Switches

Most of the modelers in my area who have staging yards that hold trains with power on them have the ability to switch off the staging tracks, remember you only really have to switch one wire (SPST).  Many use light switches.  They are relatively cheap and you can buy ganged switch boxes to hold them.

My Question...

...would be: How much amperage does an inactive DCC/Sound equipped engine pull sitting silent and still on a powered track?

Andre

Not silent

Unless you have turned off the sound in the unit, a sound equipped engine would still be making sound if the track was live.  The headlight would be on unless you turned off the headlights, any sound equipped cars would still be on, any lighting in passenger trains or cabooses would still be on.

Yes - power off

I'm currently building the El Paso Staging Yard/Return Loop my SP Lorsdburg Sub and it will have auto-power off functionality for each of the seven tracks. My layout will also include an identical (Colton, CA) Staging Yard/Return Loop at the other end and it will have the same auto-power off functionality. You can see a picture of my control panel on page -10-  of my blog (see link below).

The big reason for my doing so is not due to power consumption, but instead to prevent the cacophony of sounds simultaneously emanating from locomotives sitting on those track: blow-downs from steam engines, air tank blow-offs, diesel engine panting, steam engine chuffing, etc.

I've operated on large layouts that had this same auto-off functionality for trains parked in hidden staging and it's really nice because on a large layout, the sound from just the locos in use can almost be a bit over-whelming.

I plan to install power/DCC

I plan to install power/DCC cutoffs in my staging yard.

Any recommendations for economical switches to wire between the main bus and the staging track(s)?

Jim - DCC Specialties PSX?

More costly than a switch, but it would give you a separate power district with local over-current/short protection as well as track power on and off by an accessory command from a throttle, touchscreen panel or physical switch.

The usual "no relation, just a happy customer" applies.  

Pete 

Switches

Regular old wall switches one rail.

We did an experiment at a modular set up.

The club had problems with the main lines cutting out due to overload.  We found that 8 was the magic number for dcc equipped locomotives with sound.  More than that would cut out the the system.  This was running loco's, but further experiments showed that dcc sound loco's idling pulled as much as one amp just sitting on live tracks.

An additional problem we have run into is with our 5 amp system, locomotives that hit a switch that had been left thrown wrong causing a short would use the locomotive as a fuse instead of the breakers!

It becomes a fine balance between the number of dcc sound locomotives sitting idling, and the size of your circuit protection.

We have one member who has a passenger train with all of the cars lit.  We don't even let him run that one unless he is the only train on the layout!  It looks nice, but is a real power hog.

If you have trains sitting on all of those staging yards live, you will probably have mysterious power losses during operation.  It is not particularly difficult or complicated to put a toggle switch on each track of a staging yard to shut off power to one rail of every track when parking trains in staging.

PSX already covered.

Pete,

I already have 4 PSX units 

What I would like if anyone has suggestions are some economical switches I can use to cut-off power to staging track please!

Dave. was switches would be one option.  There might be something smaller and also economical.

Jim

@Paul - question

I like the panel - looks nice.

You mention having an auto-power off capability; how does that work?  I scanned some of the posts and didn't see wehre that was explained.

For Jim Fitch

Jim, I just did a seach and found this company.  I tried to copy paste but it did not work.  I found a company called Jameco Electronics.  I opened the home page and put "switches" in the search box on the home page.  They have a bunch of toggle, push button, & rocker switches at reasonable prices with quantity discounts.

Slide Switches

Jim. I found the cheapest little switches on Amazon.

URL: https://www.amazon.com/s?k=slide+switches&ref=nb_sb_noss_1

They list a large variety. So, search away and find what you want. I did. And I am totally satisfied with the quality and ease of use. i.e. Just a customer.

I did a quickie, and found:

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Industrial+Switches&rh=p_n_feature_nineteen_browse-bin%3A18945464011%2Cp_n_feature_eight_browse-bin%3A18644646011%2Cp_n_feature_thirteen_browse-bin%3A18644501011%2Cp_n_feature_sixteen_browse-bin%3A18644708011%2Cn%3A16310091%2Cn%3A306506011%2Cn%3A306588011&pd_rd_r=d5fcf742-4c3f-4bfc-8182-38851bdc987c&pd_rd_w=cE6fL&pd_rd_wg=X3Z2I&pf_rd_p=e73919cf-fe4b-47ba-9a70-9aa96231a328&pf_rd_r=K1MFW0T5KCYYP7Z5NF5H&pid=a4mHBHL&ref=sr_es_sbs_swt&page=1

Scroll down to see lower prices. Not all slide, but toggle should do the same for you.

Jim, if you buy really cheap ones....

buy the ones with standard sized holes so you can replace them easily.

I have switches for my

I have switches for my staging yard.  Years ago I encountered an engine that got hot enough to damage the shell after it sat in a staging yard for several days during a large convention when the layout was open.  The staging yard was not well ventilated so everything got pretty hot.  
So I switch my trains off

-Doug M

I have 18 staging tracks

I have 18 staging tracks divided up into 6 each in 3 different zones. rather than provided a switch for eack track, I plan on having 3 switches, one for each group of 6 tracks. I will only be switching any one of the zones when I want to pull an engine from staging, or insert one.

I am going to have 5 tracks in my roundhouse, and I am thinking of having only one switch to turn on the tracks when I want to access an engine. So those other locos will only be on for a short time.

A hot time on the layout

Do not underestimate how hot things can get even at low voltages.  A layout was made using 2" foam as the roadbed.  The layout also had a "high frequency detection" signal system overlaid on the track power.   An engine derailed in a hidden area and the high frequency signal on the track heated the shorted wheels hot enough that they went "China Syndrome" and melted through the Atlas flex track and 2 in foam, ending up on the floor.  

I was helping trouble shoot why stuff shorted out, crawling around under the layout looking at wires and the first clue was when I found a wheelset covered in melted plastic on the floor under the layout (with a melted hole in the foam directly above it).

Rotary switches

I have two 11-track staging yards, with track power wired through one 12-position rotary (break before make) switch per yard.  The 12th position is “off”.  Works great...for most yards you only need one track powered at a time, and if you need more, just add another switch.  And one rotary switch is cheaper than 11wall switches....

Watch for current limit of switch

The little slide switches I bought were for turnout throw, so current was not important. The throw was. PECO needed a 3mm throw, so my switches had to go that far. No biggy. And not important to you. But if you put a switch on one track, you need to be sure it's going to handle that current. For Brian, if you wire one switch to handle 6 tracks, you may over capacitate that switch. 6 tracks with locos and lighted cars can be a lot of amps.

STYCS Provides Auto-Off Capability

Steve - I'm using a STaging Yard Control System (STYCS) available from "Signals By Spreadsheet".

http://www.signalsbyspreadsheet.com/

From SBS's Accessory Decoders web page, the functionality of STYCS is as follows:

• Designed primarily for stub ended staging yards (mine is double-ended and I'm fortunate enough that the system designer is also installing it on my layout)
• 8 routes (8 tracks/pushbuttons, 7 switches) max (at present)
• Designed for hidden (not visible to operator) staging:
• Photo sensors determine occupancy of a track
• Entering train is stopped at the stub end automatically
• Departing train’s track is activated for selectable amount of time
• All occupied tracks are deactivated when not entering or departing
• Turns off locomotive, sound, headlight, etc.
• LED Status indicators (optional) provide:
  • Track Occupied
  • Track Selected
  • Track Power ON
• Any or all switches may be locked (usually by Dispatcher)
• Addresses and CV’s programmed with DCC throttle

El Paso staging on my layout is a 7-track, double ended yard that is also a reversing loop. You can view it on the last page of my track plan here:

https://forum.mrhmag.com/post/sp-lordsburg-sub-as-of-170226-12206184

The auto-power off occurs when a train enters the inbound side of the yard, goes all the way around to the outbound end and when the lead loco goes over / covers up the optical sensor the power gets shuts off to that track stopping the train.

When a train wants to depart El Paso staging, one presses the button on the appropriate track on the control panel which lines up all of the turnouts and also powers up the track. The amount of time the power is on is tuneable up to 255 seconds.

Granted this is a little more intense than a simple on/off switch, but once installed it's very simple and user friendly. I've operated on other layouts that use this and it's the (Chessie) cat's meow!

Limited by start-up

Is this G scale? The limit is in start-up, once they're on the layout, they shouldn't draw much of anything, even in larger scales.

I have found that certain decoders (looking at you, QSI) have huge inrush currents, while others don't. I've maxed out at around 12-15 locomotives sitting in the yard with a 2.5A Zephyr to start up. As I build my new layout, I'll wire for a larger booster, and combined with proper setup of PSX breakers, I anticipate no problems. You certainly can shut tracks, off, SPST switches aren't exactly expensive. I was going to wire my yard to do so, but decided that just getting a bigger booster to handle start-up load was the better option.

  And one rotary switch is

Can you still get rotary switches,...good ones at reasonable prices ??

HOT times with DCC

This is one item that really concerns me, a short by derail, OR going against an incorrectly thrown switch. I don't want any fires, nor melted engines. Won't the PSX curcuit breakers help protect against this??

Power everywhere

Yes, a good circuit breaker will stop shorts and melt downs.  

However a switch can prevent stray power surges doing things to decoders, it can prevent a user accidently dialing up "program on the main" and reprogramming EVERY engine on the layout, and it can prevent a user from fat fingering an engine or consist number while trying to acquire it and end up derailing a train in a staging track at the other end of the layout.

Double ended

True, the thing you have to consider is whether a double ended staging yard can have a train arriving and a train departing at the same time.  

If the yard is double ended and connects to two "different' ends of the layout, then its entirely possible that a train could be moving through each end of the staging yard at the same time.  In that case the individual switches would be a better option. 

If its a single track leading into a balloon loop and only one train can be moving at any time, then a rotary switch may be a better option.